In tests we trust

Based on recent (and continuing) experiences at a mid-size retail bank, this session builds the themes of trust, automated tests and test data management. I'll explain why I believe that trust is the essential ingredient in any attempt to get different parts of the organization to work together effectively, using specific examples. I'll go on to describe how I've seen test automation as an enabler of that change, and why without an appropriate approach to managing test data these initiatives typically founder before they can take root.

Seb Rose is an independent software developer, trainer and consultant based in the UK. He specializes in working with teams adopting and refining their agile practices, with a particular focus on automated testing and continuous delivery. He first worked as a programmer in 1980 writing applications for estate agents and solicitors in compiled BASIC on an Apple II. He has worked with many mainstream technologies since then, for many well-known companies, such as Amazon, IBM, NCR, HBOS, Standard Life and Rabobank. Now most of the code he writes is for open source projects, such as Cucumber and Cyber-Dojo. He is a regular conference speaker, contributor to O'Reilly's "97 Things Every Programmer Should Know" and co-author of the Pragmatic Programmer's "The Cucumber-JVM Book."